Incentives to increase renewables in the City

Published at
06/03/2018 07:00 PM

The City of Sydney will put $750,000 towards an innovative $2.25 million Ausgrid grant program to reduce demand for electricity and carbon emissions in Australia’s largest city.

The program is expected to reduce emissions by about 10,000 tonnes per year – equivalent to taking 2,500
Ausgrid recently approached the City to boost funding for their $1.5M permanent demand reduction program It offers incentives for customers to permanently reduce their electricity use on Ausgrid’s network.

Permanent reductions can be achieved through energy efficiency measures such as LED lighting, variable
speed pumps and smart building control systems, or through increased on-site generation such as solar PV.

These reductions will reduce the need for Ausgrid to replace ageing electricity network infrastructure by
lowering demand on the electricity grid, which over time, will lower the cost of electricity for residents and
businesses.

“By working together, we can make a significant impact on carbon pollution, improve energy efficiency and
reduce the cost of electricity,” said Lord Mayor Clover Moore.

“We’re covering as many of our own buildings with solar PV as we can, but we can’t control the buildings we
don’t own. Initiatives like this encourage building owners across the city to invest in renewables and energy
efficiency measures.

“This will help us reach our ambitious targets to reduce emissions by 70 per cent and source half of the
electricity supply in our area from renewables.”

“This is an exciting opportunity for Ausgrid customers to be part of an innovative program that will help reduce
electricity use, make the grid more sustainable, improve affordability and benefit the environment.

“Our network has the second lowest rate of solar take-up by customers due to the high number of apartments
and businesses in our footprint, but this project could realise a solution that would possibly increase the number
of solar installations on apartment buildings and leased commercial properties.”

There have been massive emission reductions in the prime building sector through the City of Sydney-led
Better Buildings Partnership (BBP) program. BBP members, which include the City’s biggest property owners,
have slashed emissions by almost half.